Question about that one weird thing that can lock you out for days

I got a new phone and set up a fancy authenticator app for my main email. The app worked fine for a week, then my phone did a weird update and the app just vanished. I spent the next two days trying to get back into my own account, going through every 'recovery' step the company had. It finally took a call to their support line, a 45 minute wait on hold, and reading a backup code I had printed out and put in a drawer. Has anyone else had an authenticator app just disappear like that? What's your backup plan?

3 comments

3 Comments

bennett.jana3d ago

Saw a tech blog call this the "authenticator apocalypse." They said cloud backups for those apps are still kinda shaky. Always keep those paper backup codes somewhere safe.

troysmith3d agoMost Upvoted

Shaky cloud backups" sounds like fear mongering to me.

burns.jenny3d ago

That vanishing app situation sounds like a real nightmare to deal with.